Does anyone mix audio for TV?

[nickfever]

On last seasons OMF files they have music on the dialogue track in between dialogue segments, which makes the dipping process a bit more difficult, especially since there is narration on some other tracks while that music is playing. Is this fairly common?Also, They have the same narration audio file doubled playing simultaneously (are they trying to make it stereo?) It only has phase issues when I invert the phase of one of the tracks, then it cancels out completely. I still wonder why they did this. Am I supposed to pan one hard left and the other hard right? I was thinking of just muting one, and panning the other to center.I'm sure I'll be back with more questions later,Nick

[twilsbach]

Nick,I'm a little unclear about the dialogue/music tracks you've described.Its not uncommon for video editors to be terribly sloppy with where they put sound and how they organize tracks. Sometimes its a hardware limitation. In both Avid and FCP, anything over 8 tracks you have to render to hear. That is a pain in the ass, so I'll make stuff fit where it needs to fit, even if that means putting music on an SFX track.So--If you have both music and dialogue on the same track, but at different points in the timeline. Organize it however you want, it doesn't much matter.Not sure if thats what you meant, or if there are places were you have already mixed music & dialogue. If thats the case, I would imagine they're using a source that they dont' have access to separated audio, and they (and you) are stuck with it.In the case of the doubled narration, probably not trying to get it stereo, thats likely how it came from the VO talent and they just left it in to give you options. Take the duplicated one out of the mix, and you're ok, or mix it like you mentioned and you're ok.I'm assuming you have a corresponding Quicktime to go with the OMF? Basically, as long as it sounds good and matches picture they're not going to care how you assign tracks or move things around. In the end, you're just sending a stereo mix (and maybe a mix minus or international mix)? right. They don't' care how you get there. Because while you're ducking, dipping & EQ'ing. They're adding fonts and show graphics, color-correcting, tweaking visual effects and replacing lingering low-resolution pictures.

[dregnocandbenkprod]

I do what do you need....Sound affects, surround sound 2.1, 5.1 etc.?

[wodinlord]

Here are a bunch of random basic things to watch for. You may already know all of them...Tim is right, video editors, especially on Avid, will stick audio anywhere they have a spot open, because they only program in volume changes and don't do linear mixing such as eq etc., unless they render a plug or something. Anyway, the stereo VO is just that way because it was exported by someone as a stereo AIF or WAV. Video guys usually don't dump one channel because they are afraid it might be a lav mic - boom mic split and they just tend to think in 2c channel pairs. Also, if they use those tracks for other audio, they can't keep it panned center w/o having both sides.Just be sure when moving tracks around that you maintain their exact timecode position. Maybe make a dupe of anything you are moving and that way you always have the original to refer to for position. Obvious, but easy to make a mistake if you are not used to working in sync.Did you get an OMF 2 file or an AAF Avid export? If it is an AAF, it should have the video embedded as well as the audio files. Either way, you should have "handles" on the audio that will allow you to extend the top and tail of any file in order to facilitate crossfades or whatever. Be sure that the audio and video files are copied into your session when you import as opposed to being "referred to", even if the OMF is in your session. That keeps all the files together in one place to backup and is less taxing on CPU.Check video quality settings in your DAW. Higher settings will look better, but can cause video delay that will throw you out of sync w/ picture by a few subframes. Your app should have settings to correct this.Good Luck,Wodinlord

[mojobone]

Effin' brilliant post, Wodinlord! [guzzling popcorn, screaming at neighbors in cheap seats]

[wodinlord]

Hey Nick,How is it coming along?Wodinlord

[nickfever]

I have been gone for a week, and not been able too work.Will post when I get home.Nick

[nickfever]

Tim, this answers my question.Thank you.Aug 24, 2008, 8:13am, twilsbach wrote:Nick,I'm a little unclear about the dialogue/music tracks you've described.Its not uncommon for video editors to be terribly sloppy with where they put sound and how they organize tracks. Sometimes its a hardware limitation. In both Avid and FCP, anything over 8 tracks you have to render to hear. That is a pain in the ass, so I'll make stuff fit where it needs to fit, even if that means putting music on an SFX track.So--If you have both music and dialogue on the same track, but at different points in the timeline. Organize it however you want, it doesn't much matter.In the case of the doubled narration, probably not trying to get it stereo, thats likely how it came from the VO talent and they just left it in to give you options. Take the duplicated one out of the mix, and you're ok, or mix it like you mentioned and you're ok.Mojo, I downloaded this.Aug 19, 2008, 11:32pm, mojobone wrote:Roger Nichols Digital's free version of Inspector (VST) is a great tool.Now, I've learned they use a Dolby LM100 Broadcast Loudness Meter (which I can not afford) to measure the perceived loudness of human speech within a program. Infinite term levels should reside between -26 and -28 (only 2 dB ). Anyone have any tips or advice what to do concerning this?Thanks to everyone thus far,Nick,PS - I have only a few days, then will be gone again until the end of the month.

[mojobone]

Possibly the free version won't have the horsepower required for your application. The nice thing is having the peak and RMS readings on a single scale, which is good to have even before the mastering stage, lets you know when you're in the ballpark. I'm not sure what's meant by the phrase, "infinite term level", but absolute peaks can be shoehorned into a two decibel range pretty easily using compression and hard limiting; crest factor, the ratio of peaks to valleys is the determining factor for apparent/perceived loudness barring the use of psychoacoustic processors. Perhaps I'd better wait for the cavalry, at this point. Tim, Aub and Wodinlord would have a better handle on the terminology.

[nickfever]

I believe "infinite term level" is dolbys way of measure the average dB throughout the entire television program from start to finish.nick